Esther Rantzen has warned that loneliness is a blight on society that must be fought all year round, drawing on her experience during Covid-19 lockdowns and her work with vulnerable people. Writing in her Daily Mail column on Christmas Day 2021, the broadcaster said the pandemic revealed the true toll of isolation on parents and grandparents cut off from their families.
Rantzen, who founded Childline for children and The Silver Line for older people, said recent months brought heartbreaking images of care home residents effectively imprisoned and limited to seeing relatives through glass panes. She urged people to reach out to isolated friends and family proactively, even if they do not ask for help.
Care home regulations and pandemic isolation
In November 2020, Rantzen argued that loving visits to relatives in care homes could save as many lives as a Covid-19 vaccine. She highlighted draconian and arbitrary regulations imposed without family consent, which she called an unnecessary over-reaction despite understandable desires to protect residents.
She cited a woman named Sarah, who described visits to her nearly 90-year-old husband, Philip, as "Heartbreaking." Under the rules at the time, Sarah was permitted to see him only once a fortnight for just half an hour.
Earlier in the pandemic, in March 2020, Rantzen entered self-isolation at home at age 79. She wrote that coronavirus was a "test for humanity. Not just for the doctors and nurses, the paramedics, the epidemiologists and the Government, but for all of us." She also described recent comments by Prime Minister Boris Johnson as a "chilling statement of reality."
Personal struggles with isolation and abuse
Rantzen has frequently drawn on her own life to discuss social isolation and trauma in her columns. In October 2011, she wrote about her own "aching loneliness," receiving an overwhelming response of understanding from readers after admitting: "I never thought I would be so lonely."
In August 2011, she revealed that she was a victim of child abuse during her youth. Writing about the memory, she stated: "I can still feel Uncle's touch - and shudder at the memory."
Rantzen is a veteran British television presenter and campaigner. She founded Childline in 1986 to provide confidential counselling for children, and later established The Silver Line to support elderly people experiencing isolation across the United Kingdom.
Family breakdown and child protection advocacy
Her columns have regularly addressed family breakdown and grandparenthood. In May 2014, she described the denial of access to grandchildren as a "living bereavement," prompting a flood of stories from affected families. By August 2017, after welcoming twin girls to her grandchildren, she wrote of weeping for grandparents robbed of holding a grandchild.
Rantzen has also called for systemic reforms in child protection. In May 2013, she urged the creation of a whistleblower hotline to stop abusers like former broadcaster Stuart Hall and prevent victims from being tormented in court, warning that rock stars with 14-year-old groupies could be next. In January 2013, she insisted columns should focus on real crimes against children rather than celebrity headlines.
Television, culture, and personal memoirs
Rantzen has spent over a decade writing for the Daily Mail on television, ageism, and culture. In November 2010, she countered claims by presenter Nick Ross that ageing stars should not complain when dropped for being too old. That same autumn, in October 2010, she praised older Strictly Come Dancing contestants, including Felicity Kendal's splits and Ann Widdecombe's waltzing, for bringing sparkle back to the show.
Celebrating her 70th birthday in June 2010, Rantzen recalled running naked around her garden in a hat at age 50, writing that at 70 she would not bother with the hat.
In November 2016, she praised former politician Ed Balls as an unlikely star on Strictly Come Dancing, writing that it had been "a ball" watching him. In October 2012, she expressed deep concern over a documentary showing young women carrying knives in handbags and attempting to out-drink men.
Her writing ranged from lighthearted confessions to consumer critiques. In August 2012, after Fifty Shades of Grey became popular among over-70s, she wrote that people are never too old for sex. In July 2011, she questioned if she could find anything to wear as Marks & Spencer faced a backlash from loyal customers.
In March 2011, following her mother's death, Rantzen admitted she could not bear to part with her mother's belongings, writing: "It's not junk, it's my life." In February 2011, she detailed discovering the secret of Emily's 14 lost years.
